I have not windsurfed the last 10 Years. Before that I windsurfed for 13-14 Years on short boards such as Bic Electric Rock, F2 280 Sputnik, Mistral Screamer etc. my largest sail ever was a 6,7 meter Neil Pryde race sail. Back then I could waterstart and even do the occasional slalom gybe - but I have propably lost the edge :-(.

I am now contemplating starting again. However I find a myriade of boards and sails to choose between. You could say spoiled for choice but less could very well be better, minimizing the posibility of a wrong choice.

I weigh approx 65 kg and I am 170 cm. tall - and 51 Years old :-O

I would be sailing in a bay with off-, side- and onshore conditions. I would be sailing in flatwater to choppy conditions (short steep chop). Wind conditions would be 10-18 knots - equal to from when white caps occationally appear until I start getting scared stiff.

As I would be sailing only occasionally I would appreciate your suggestion for a one board and one sail combo.

A high "plug and play" factor would be important to optimize what I get out of my time on the water. I would have a high emphasis on control and how easy it would be to get good performance from the suggested combo.

My last sails were very sensitive to perfect rigging - I would love it if the sail could be a little bit more forgiving with regards to "perfect rigging" although I do understand that it is important.

I would not be able to sail "a lot" and thus would not be able to spend a lot of time experimenting trim on the board and sail.

Based on the above - could - would you pass on a recommandation based on your wast experience ? I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks a lot.

Best regards

Roger

13th February 2007 09:02 PM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Hi Steen,
At least initially, until you get most of your skills back, perhaps a mid size Carve (111/122/133 ltr) would seem a really good place to start.
Since modern sails have more range and perhaps a little less overall power I&#39;d think for 10-18 knots a 7.0-7.5 m2 rig would probably be the best.
Not sure where you are located, so I cannot know what your local "brands" are.
Sailworks Retro, Severne Gator, and several other "free race" designs would be good and they are pretty much "plug and play" to rig.
The Retro sails have a "tuning indicator" in the design, so if you use the correct mast, just downhaul until the "scallop" in the panel with the tuning indicator mark reaches the mark, and you have the sail all tuned for it&#39;s mid range. Retro&#39;s come with a one side adjustable outhaul system so you can make small tuning "adjustments" as you are saiing.
I would recommend an upgrade to the full 2 sided formula adjustable outhaul system as then you can tune your sail&#39;s power for whatever the conditions are "at the moment".
If the wind strength increases, or lessens, by more than 3-5 knots, a quick trip to the beach and a little more (or less) downhaul (the tuning indicator will let you know how much you&#39;ve changed things) and you can get the full range out of your new rig.
Some other sails (besides the Retro) have tuning indicators so look around before you buy and look for a sail with this feature, get the correct or "best" mast and rigging/tuning your sail becomes very easy and it will be easy to duplicate your settings when you get the same wind conditions again.
So, while you were away from windsurfing, things got quite a bit easier and far more "user friendly".
Hope this helps,

Steen

14th February 2007 12:14 PM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Hi Roger,

thank you very much - that was exactly the kind of reply I was hoping and looking for.

Thanks

Keep up the good work

Best regards

Steen

ekcebiche

23rd February 2007 05:55 AM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Roger -

I&#39;m in the same boat. I used to be a pretty good sailor but time and weight has caught up to me. I&#39;ve been removed from the sport for about 8 years, have gained 25 lbs.

I got back in the sport last year and have progressed. However, the changes in the gear have made the process more difficult than it should have been. Anyhow, I have been in 30+ knot conditions about 10-12 times last year and have had trouble getting my little board to plane (a Logosz OCR - I used to love this board and could get it going on 5.5 in about 15 knots of wind - I weighed about 180 back then.) Now I can&#39;t even get it to float in 30+ knots. What&#39;s going on? I can&#39;t imagine that my small board technique has become that bad. I weigh 205 but naked and dry. Any advice? Do I need a 95 liter board as my little board now. I believe the OCR has about 85 liters of volume.

Many thanks in advance for your advice.

Mario

Roger

23rd February 2007 08:17 PM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Hi Mario,
I don&#39;t weigh anything like as much as you do, but I&#39;ve noticed the same thing.
I have a little custom 75 ltr (who really knows the volume as it&#39;s a custom) Gorge "no-Nose" board that I sometimes get out on windy days.
I think it may be similar to your Logosz.
It takes quite a bit of "different" technique when compared to the modern wider high wind boards. It takes me a few minutes to "change how I sail" to suit the board, and it&#39;s always very frustrating right at first. When I make the right tecnique changes, all of a sudden the little custom gets fun to ride again.
I think you would be surprized at how easy it is to sail a 95-100 liter modern board in the same conditions you used to sail on your OCR.
Something like the Kombat 87 or 97 might really suprise you.
Hope this helps,

ekcebiche

1st March 2007 11:05 AM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly - I wonder why the reply notice did not make my email inbox.

Anyhow, I&#39;ll keep working on the technique end of it. You know, it&#39;s kind of frustrating being out in great conditions, unable to hold down my 125ltr Roberts in 30+ knots, and unable to get my next size board up to speed.

Maybe I do need to fill that gap with a 90 to 95 liter board. Any other shape that you would recommend for great lakes conditions - ranging from chop to large swell? How will the Evo fit my needs? Or something like a Quatro FSW 95?

Will you be in the OBX again for windfest? Don&#39;t know if you remember but you helped me out filing some fins down last year. This may be the best venue for me to make a decision.

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Mario

Roger

1st March 2007 09:40 PM

RE: Board - Sail selection

Hi Mario,
I don&#39;t think you missed any "notifications" here.
To the best of my knowledge, you need to come back and look at the forums for responses and new posts. There&#39;s nothing I know of that would send you an email or other "notification" that your post had been responded to.
Hope this helps,